The History of Highnam Court
From a 17th-century rebuild after the Civil War to a lovingly restored country estate — four centuries of remarkable ownership.
Highnam Court is a Grade I listed country house in Highnam, Gloucestershire, set just north of the A40. Built in 1658 for William Cooke following damage to the original structure during the English Civil War, the house has passed through the hands of some of England's most distinguished families over four centuries.
Today the house remains privately owned, but its 40 acres of gardens — among the finest in the country — are opened to the public throughout the year, offering a rare glimpse into one of Gloucestershire's great historic estates.
In addition to the Grade I listing of the manor itself, Highnam Court park and garden are Grade II* listed, and multiple individual structures within the garden and estate are Grade II listed.
Four Centuries of Ownership
The Cooke Family & the Civil War Rebuild
The original structure at Highnam was damaged during the English Civil War, and it fell to William Cooke — son of Sir Robert Cooke — to rebuild the house in the commonwealth period The result was a handsome manor in the Artisan Mannerist style, constructed in brick with contrasting ashlar trim, stone quoins, and a slate hipped roof.
Following William Cooke's death in 1703, the estate passed to his son Edward Cooke, and then to Edward's son Dennis Cooke around 1724. Dennis died in 1747 without a direct male heir, and Highnam Court was inherited by his sisters.
The Guise Baronets
Through Dennis Cooke's sisters, the estate came to Sir John Guise, 1st Baronet, who undertook significant improvements to the interior of the house during the 18th century. He also landscaped the grounds, laying the foundations for the gardens that would later become celebrated across the country.
Further alterations were made in the early 19th century by his son Sir Berkeley William Guise, 2nd Baronet. Following Sir Berkeley's death in 1834, the estate passed to his brother, Sir John Wright Guise, who held it until its sale in 1838.
The Gambier-Parry Era
Thomas Gambier-Parry purchased the estate from the Guise family in 1838, beginning one of the most transformative periods in the house's history. He commissioned architect Lewis Vulliamy to renovate the house in 1840 and again in 1855, adding a single-storey wing across the rear and extending the service wing. Further renovations by David Brandon in 1869 added a billiard room.
Gambier-Parry also reversed the orientation of the house — redirecting the main entrance from the south to the north facade, and constructing a portico with Ionic columns. This gave the south side unobstructed views across the gardens and the adjacent lake.
Thomas Gambier-Parry died in 1888. The estate eventually passed to his son, the distinguished composer Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, in 1896. After Parry's death in 1918, his half-brother Major Ernest Gambier-Parry succeeded to the estate, followed by Thomas Mark Gambier-Parry, who resided at Highnam Court until his death in 1966.
During the Second World War, Highnam Court was commissioned on 28 April 1941 as an overspill centre for Royal Navy recruits, serving as a tender to HMS Ganges. Operations were transferred to HMS Cabbala on 31 January 1942.
Fenton & the Gloucestershire Archives
Thomas Mark Gambier-Parry was succeeded by his cousin's great-grandson, Thomas Fenton, who inherited Highnam Court as a teenager. Ownership of the manor was transferred in 1977. Before his death in 2010, Fenton donated a remarkable collection of documents relating to the administration of the estate — covering the period from 1650 to 1940 — to the Gloucestershire Archives.
This archive represents an invaluable record of four centuries of estate management, and remains an important resource for historians of Gloucestershire and English country house life.
Roger Head & the Garden Restoration
Gloucester businessman Roger Head became the owner of Highnam Court in 1994, serving as High Sheriff of Gloucestershire in 2015–16. Under his stewardship, the house and gardens have been transformed. An orangery was added to the west side of the house, completed in 2001, and is occasionally used for public exhibitions and refreshments.
The gardens, which had been largely neglected throughout the 20th century, were restored to their Victorian splendour. The Pulhamite winter garden — installed between 1849 and 1862 with grottos, rock gardens, and waterfalls — was carefully revived. The east garden's Irish yews were vigorously pruned, and the rose garden was restored using 19th-century photographs as a guide.
A wisteria walk was planted in 2004, featuring a limestone sculpture by artist Mat Chivers, and the orangery knot garden was completed in December 2004 with variegated boxwood hedging and a statue of Mercury, the Winged Messenger. A meadow garden is among the most recent additions to the estate.
Within four decades of Thomas Gambier-Parry beginning to lay out his gardens, they were considered among the loveliest in the United Kingdom.
Architecture & Design
The architectural style of Highnam Court is Artisan Mannerism — a distinctly English interpretation of continental Baroque, characterised by bold decorative detail and confident symmetry.
The nine-window south facade is two and a half storeys, with a five-window slightly recessed centre section. The exterior is of brick with contrasting ashlar trim, stone quoins, and some artificial stone, beneath a slate hipped roof.
The entrance features a pair of French doors with a semicircular fanlight. The baroque surround includes a keystone, bilateral stone columns with swags and fruit, and a stone niche above containing a statue of a female figure.
The interior follows a double-pile plan. The music room and billiard room both feature marble fireplaces, and the gold room contains a marble buffet and mirror facing a marble fireplace. The plaster ceiling of the gold room and music room are fine examples of the rococo plasterwork found throughout the house.
The main staircase dates from the 18th century, with a cantilevered stone structure and iron balusters. An older staircase retains stone for its first four treads, with wood above.